Spring, summer, and fall are all allergy season for some unfortunate people who are allergic to pollen. In spring, it’s early-flowering, wind-pollinated trees. They release large amounts of pollen in hopes that a few grains will find their way to a waiting flower. Because they don’t need to attract insects, they are small and inconspicuous. In summer, the grasses take over — and people can be allergic to both grass and trees. In fall, it’s the weeds such as ragweed. Perhaps due to global warming, the ragweed season has lengthened by almost a month in Canada.

]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2017/06/16/tree-or-grass-allergies/feed/0monadoFingers holding tiny flowers with red stemsWeather Network galleryhttps://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2017/03/22/weather-network-gallery/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2017/03/22/weather-network-gallery/#respondThu, 23 Mar 2017 00:39:37 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11570It’s always good to remember that weather is both heartless and beautiful, to watch out for its vagaries and to enjoy its beauty. The Weather Network Gallery is a good place to browse through hundreds of beautiful images in several categories: scenes of the season, active weather, beautiful weather, animals, gardening, outdoor activities, and travel.

]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2017/03/22/weather-network-gallery/feed/0monadoWeather-Network-GalleryWhere would we be without axial tilt?https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/where-would-we-be-without-axial-tilt/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/where-would-we-be-without-axial-tilt/#commentsWed, 21 Dec 2016 00:50:56 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11578The world would be a more boring place: we’d have no seasons, no spring and summer, no dead of winter, no dog days of summer, and no Yule celebrations.

]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/where-would-we-be-without-axial-tilt/feed/2monadoaxial-tilt-reason-for-seasonWhite supremacists in U.S. police forceshttps://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2016/07/17/white-supremacists-in-u-s-police-forces/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2016/07/17/white-supremacists-in-u-s-police-forces/#respondMon, 18 Jul 2016 00:38:08 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11565A little-noted FBI report documented the infiltration of U.S. police forces by organized racists in white supremacist organizations.
]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2016/07/17/white-supremacists-in-u-s-police-forces/feed/0monadoGreeting cards for the holidayshttps://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/11/15/greeting-cards-for-the-holidays/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/11/15/greeting-cards-for-the-holidays/#respondSun, 15 Nov 2015 10:00:37 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11531Consider ordering some of these beautiful cards. They are blank inside, so you can craft your own message to each recipient.

]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/11/15/greeting-cards-for-the-holidays/feed/0monadoCard shows a christmas bulb that looks like the Earth seen from spaceThe 1918 Flu Pandemichttps://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/10/15/the-1918-flu-pandemic/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/10/15/the-1918-flu-pandemic/#respondFri, 16 Oct 2015 01:17:18 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11563The influenza pandemic of 1918-19 killed more people than the Great War. Its cause was unknown at the time, but we now know it to be an H1N1 strain of the virus.

]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/10/15/the-1918-flu-pandemic/feed/0monadoSympathy for the devilhttps://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/02/20/sympathy-for-the-devil/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/02/20/sympathy-for-the-devil/#respondFri, 20 Feb 2015 12:00:24 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11561A man that convinced many others that he could use magic to bring a lottery win has been sentenced to a long term in prison.

The Toronto Stardevotes a few thousand words to this story, but I’ll confess I have very little sympathy for the victims. The one most prominently mentioned in the story had 105,000 CAD in free cash to spend on this jaw-droppingly stupid scam. The devil (for whom I’m not really sympathetic either; he deliberately fooled gullible people, preying on their mental weakness—evil) was not Bernie Madoff, preying on friendships and moving money around in a Ponzi scheme; this scam was transparently fake from the first words.

Particularly interesting (to me) is how the writer of the Star article somehow treats the victims’ idiocy as a non-issue.

]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/02/20/sympathy-for-the-devil/feed/0lotstreetwizRand Paul and mandatory vaccinationhttps://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/02/08/rand-paul-and-mandatory-vaccination/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/02/08/rand-paul-and-mandatory-vaccination/#respondSun, 08 Feb 2015 16:57:40 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11559Rand Paul, whatever his other flaws and virtues, is a physician, so his comments on vaccination on Monday caused considerable eyebrow-raising, and accusations, muted or not, of either pandering to the tinfoil brigade or of his not being a very good physician.

]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/jesus-and-mo/feed/0monadoA cartoon shows four panels of Jesus and Mohammed in bed, reading and talkingAssociated Press censors itselfhttps://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/01/14/associated-press-censors-itself/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/01/14/associated-press-censors-itself/#commentsWed, 14 Jan 2015 17:32:32 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11550Apparently, right-wing pressure has caused the Associated Press to remove a picture from its library. Read Conservative values: opportunism and cowardice. Because we mustn’t offend anyone! The picture is a work of art exploring the edges of sacrilege. Sorry, people, this is the real world. You do not have a right to remain comfortably unchallenged at all times.

So in case you’re wondering what it looks like, the golden image of Immersion (Piss Christ) is here.

Piss Christ by Andres Serrano (1987)

The image is from Wikipedia, which has a discussion of the picture and its provocative title.

]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/01/14/associated-press-censors-itself/feed/2monadoA crucifix with Christ on the cross in a golden glow from the urine he's submerged inLlama antibodies may lead to new treatments for HIVhttps://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/01/08/llama-antibodies-may-lead-to-new-treatments-for-hiv/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/01/08/llama-antibodies-may-lead-to-new-treatments-for-hiv/#respondThu, 08 Jan 2015 21:16:36 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11513Antibodies found in llamas are smaller and denser than ours and may be better at getting at receptor sites that the HIV binds to. Five antibodies against HIV, which work in vitro, have been identified. There’s still the problem that our antibodies may react against the llama antibodies. Read about the newly discovered llama antibodies.

The image below compares a human antibody to a llama antibody.

]]>https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/01/08/llama-antibodies-may-lead-to-new-treatments-for-hiv/feed/0monadollama-antibodyI’m surprised that this is controversialhttps://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/01/05/im-surprised-that-this-is-controversial/
https://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/2015/01/05/im-surprised-that-this-is-controversial/#respondMon, 05 Jan 2015 15:35:49 +0000http://sciencenotes.wordpress.com/?p=11504Recent findings that two-thirds of all cancers are likely due to random chance have brought some surprising pushback. There’s an emotional reason for hoping that it’s all controllable, but that’s simply not likely. Cells mutate at random; the body’s defence systems clear out most of them; but by a second chance, some are missed. Get used to it. Eating your veggies won’t prevent all cancers. Read “On the importance of luck.”
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